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Rolling with Reuss

December 6, 2011

Greg Migliore is news editor of Autoweek.

Continuing in the fuel-injected tradition of former product czar Bob Lutz, General Motors North America president Mark Reuss is spending considerable time behind the wheel of the company’s newest products. Case in point: He spent last weekend in the 2012 Cadillac XTS.

Reuss said he logged more than 500 miles in the latest Caddy flagship sedan, which he said gives him a better sense of how to price and position the car.

The XTS arrives next year, and it replaces the DTS and the STS at the top of Cadillac’s lineup as a large, traditional sedan. Execs also hope that it will lure import buyers, as it’s loaded with Caddy’s new CUE connectivity technology, magnetic ride control and Brembo brakes. The car comes with a 300-hp V6 and in front- and all-wheel-drive configurations.

The XTS doesn’t appear to be a problem for Reuss, who once was GM’s chief engineer for large luxury cars and who also is a certified test driver on the North Course of the Nürburgring. In previous roles, he’s also overseen the performance division, including the V-series and SS lines.

Clearly, performance is still in his blood, even though he now oversees GM’s vast North American operations. Looking the part in a dark pinstriped suit—accented by V-series cufflinks—he swung by One Autoweek Tower on Wednesday morning to discuss a range of subjects, including the next-generation Chevrolet Corvette. But all he would say on that topic is that the C7 will be “pretty damn exciting.”

Reuss elaborated more deeply on other subjects, however, especially Chevrolet’s involvement in NASCAR. He suggests that the race cars should be more representative of production cars, especially regarding fuel delivery and fuel types. He also said the Sprint Cup and Nationwide series need greater differentiation, perhaps with V6 engines as used in the lower-tier competition.

“I think it’s vitally important for the future of NASCAR to be reflective of a car that you can sell from General Motors,” he said.

Reuss said he also wants road cars to remain fun to drive, even as pending CAFE regulations threaten to force cars to become slower and smaller. He argues that cars should still maintain an edge for enthusiasts, which can be accomplished through weight reduction and new materials.

“If we can’t make great, fun cars that apply, we haven’t done our job,” Reuss said. “Lap times and fun will still be there.”

Part of that will be achieved through incremental technologies, such as the light-hybrid system called eAssist that’s used on the 2012 Chevy Malibu and Buick’s Regal and LaCrosse. In fact, the Malibu is launching with that feature only, before the basic gasoline version comes online six months later. The eAssist system uses lithium-ion batteries, stop/start technology and regenerative braking to return modest fuel-economy gains.

Reuss said that system will become more common across the GM lineup, especially for larger cars and some trucks.

“We know that there’s been a permanent shift in buyer behavior,” he said. “We’ve got to have that portfolio that reaches all of ’em.”